The fastest- and slowest-selling housing markets in September 2024

Although mortgage rates dropped to two-year lows in September, homebuyers aren’t rushing back into the market just yet.

In the fourth installment of this series, Creditnews Research ranked the fastest- and slowest-selling housing markets in September and compared how housing hot spots have evolved over the past year.

In terms of how long listings stay on the market, the housing sector has significantly cooled. In fact, no metro is selling faster than it did a year ago.

Surprisingly, America’s hottest housing markets are now clustered in the Midwest, where buyers have more affordable options.

On the flip side, former hot spots in states like Florida and Texas now represent the slowest-selling markets.

The fastest-selling metros

In September, five of the top 10 fastest-selling housing markets were in Ohio, with the remaining five spread across Missouri, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and upstate New York.

In these markets, homes stayed on the market for just seven to eight days before going under contract.

St. Louis, MO: St. Louis is one of eight metros where the average home stays on the market for just seven days. Despite the quick turnover, the median listing time increased by 16.7% compared to September 2023. Like nearly every other metro, housing inventory rose year-over-year.

Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati is one of several Ohio metros in the top 10, with a median days-to-pending of seven days, up 40% from last year. Inventory grew by 23.5%, giving buyers more options.

Columbus, OH: Similar to Cincinnati, Columbus’ median days-to-pending is seven days, a 40% increase compared to the prior year. Housing inventory rose by 21.9%.

Hartford, CT: Hartford remains a tight market despite a 16.7% increase in median listing days, with homes going under contract in seven days. Hartford also has the second-lowest inventory per 1,000 citizens in the top 10, with total inventory rising by just 4.9%.

Akron, OH: Akron mirrors many other Ohio metros, with homes spending seven days on the market, a 16.7% increase from last year. Inventory grew by 8% over the same period.

Syracuse, NY: As the first upstate New York metro in the top 10, Syracuse’s housing market remains competitive, with a median days-to-pending of seven days. Its inventory per 1,000 citizens is among the lowest in the top 10.

Toledo, OH: Toledo offers buyers attractive options in the Rust Belt region, with homes going under contract in seven days, a 16.7% increase year-over-year. However, it has the highest inventory per 1,000 citizens among the top 10 metros.

Harrisburg, PA: The only Pennsylvania metro in the top 10, Harrisburg also sees homes go under contract in seven days, with a 16.7% rise in listing days. Harrisburg experienced the largest inventory spike, up 25.2% from last year.

Cleveland, OH: Homes in Cleveland took slightly longer to sell, with a median days-to-pending of eight days in September, a 33% increase from last year. While inventory per 1,000 citizens is higher at 2.43, total inventory only increased by 2.1%.

Rochester, NY: Rochester is the only metro in the study where inventory levels remained unchanged compared to last year. With a median days-to-pending of eight days, Rochester’s housing market showed little change, and it has one of the lowest inventory levels in the country, behind only San Jose, CA, and Fresno, CA.

The slowest-selling metros

All 10 of the slowest-selling metros in September were located in southern states, with six in Florida, three in Texas, and one in Louisiana.

Interestingly, these were some of the hottest housing markets during the pandemic, as remote workers flocked to the Sun Belt to escape lockdowns and enjoy better weather.

While housing inventories are rising nationwide, southern states have seen the largest surge in new listings.

In nine of the 10 slowest-selling metros, inventory levels increased by double digits compared to September 2023.

Cape Coral, FL, was the country’s slowest-selling housing market in September, with homes taking an average of 63 days to go under contract—a 65.8% increase from a year ago.

Other Florida metros in the bottom 10 included North Port, Jacksonville, Deltona, Miami, and Lakeland, where homes took between 41 and 55 days to sell.

The biggest surprise came from North Port, Jacksonville, Miami, and Lakeland where the median days-to-pending more than doubled, rising by at least 100% year-over-year.

All Florida metros saw a significant increase in new housing inventories, with new listings rising between 24.8% and 53% over the past year.

Texas was also represented in the bottom 10, with homes in McAllen taking 59 days to sell. In Austin, the median days-to-pending was 58 days, and in San Antonio, it was 44 days.

The biggest winners and losers

Unlike our April ranking, there were no “winners” in September. In 99 of the 100 metro areas studied, homes were on the market for longer compared to a year earlier.

The only exception was Rochester, NY, where the median days-to-pending was unchanged.

In 12 metros, the typical home spent at least 100% more days on the market than in September 2023.

The biggest jump came in Tucson, AZ, where the median days-to-pending rose from 10 days in September 2023 to 25 days in September 2024, a 150% increase.

Tampa, FL, was a close second, where homes spent 140% more days on the market than a year earlier.

In Charlotte, NC, the median days-to-pending jumped by 130% to 23 days. Similar increases were reported in Orlando, FL, Charleston, SC, and Palm Bay, FL.

The table below provides a list of the 10 metros with the largest increases in median days-to-pending:

Below are what can be described as last year’s “winners”—or metros that saw the smallest increases in median days-to-pending.